Chinese rescuers had evacuated 86 tourists from Mount Everest in Tibet after they were stranded due to heavy snowfall on Tuesday, according to local authorities.

The tourists, all but 13 of them Chinese, were about to go downhill after sightseeing at Mount Everest North Base Camp when a snowstorm blocked the roads, according to Chinese state news agency Xinhua.

Officials said more than 40 rescuers and machinery had been mobilized to clear a road blocked by the storm, UPI reported. Eight tourists were stranded in a nearby monastery and also evacuated.

The North Everest Base Camp is located at an altitude of 18,192 ft and is used when climbing the mountain via the challenging northeast ridge, according to TibetTravel.org. The North Base Camp has vehicle access in the summer months through a 62-mile road branching to the South from the Friendship Highway near Shegar. The "tourists' Base Camp" is located about half-way between Rongbuk Monastery and the actual climbers' Base Camp at the foot of Rongbuk glacier.

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